Tag Archives: Sandra Newgent

The Mammoth Book of Time Travel Romance edited by Trisha Telep

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Overview
Image result for the mammoth book of time travel romance book cover

Title: The Mammoth Book of Time Travel Romance
Author: Trisha Telep, Gwyn Cready, Sandy Blair, Maureen McGowan, Sara Mackenzie, Margo Maguire, Sandra Newgent, Michelle Maddox, Patrice Sarath, Jean Johnson, Patti O’Shea, Autumn Dawn, Holly Lisle, Cindy Miles, Michelle Willingham, Colby Hodge, Michele Lang, Madeline Baker, Allie Mackay & A. J. Menden
Series: Mammoth Books
In: The Mammoth Book of Time Travel Romance (Trisha Telep)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Romance, Science fiction, Short story collections, Time travel
Dates read: 11th April – 30th December 2019
Pace: Medium
Format: Anthology
Publisher: Robinson
Year: 2009
5th sentence, 74th page: She glanced over her shoulder, towards the light left on in her home, as if to remind herself she wasn’t so very far from safety.

Synopsis

Time has no meaning for true love.

Twenty tales of swachbuckling adventure and passionate romance from some of the most exciting names in romantic fiction, including Margo Maguire, Autumn Dawn, Sandy Blair, Michelle Maddox, Patti O’Shea, Holly Lisle, Kimberly Raye and Madeline Baker.

Join the heroines in this delightful anthology as they step backwards – or forwards – in time, transported to the Scottish Highlands of yesteryear, the Wild West or the distant future. Propelled through time into situations rich with possibility and fraught with danger, these sexy, sassy heroines each seek their dreamed of happy ending.

Will souls separated by time be reunited – or separated, forever?

Thoughts

This is an absolutely brilliant collection. I haven’t read any time travel romances before. So it was kind of nice to read a whole collection of them. I do have a few full length novels in this genre sitting on my shelves ready to go though. Now that I’ve read this collection, I kind of can’t wait!

Even though all of these stories featured time travel and romance in some way, shape or form, the themes and messages throughout were vastly different. The stories weren’t overly lustful like many of the romances that I’ve read. Actually, there tended to be more of a focus on the romances and the finding true love message. Or just on the ways in which time travel actually works.

The stories were generally a mix of present and past; or present and future. Only one or two stories feature the past and the future, but most had a great blending of realities. Sometimes characters ended up back in their own time, sometimes in a different time that fulfilled their greatest desires. There really was something for everyone in this.

Whilst I absolutely adored this collection, it isn’t one that I will probably read again and again. As much as I loved everything, there was nothing that stood out as a story that I wanted to reread.

<- The Mammoth Book of Thrillers, Ghosts and MysteriesThe Key to Happiness ->

Image source: Goodreads

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The Wild Card by Sandra Newgent

Book Review, , ,
Overview
Image result for the mammoth book of time travel romance book cover

Title: The Wild Card
Author: Sandra Newgent
In: The Mammoth Book of Time Travel Romance (Trisha Telep)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Contemporary romance, Time travel
Dates read: 5th May 2019
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: Robinson
Year: 2009
5th sentence, 74th page: The fellow across from him folded.

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Synopsis

Cami is just coasting through life, unsure of what her next step is. But when a chance encounter with a man promises to bring all of her fantasies alive, she is thrown back into a world that she knows nothing about, and a man she wants to know everything about.

Thoughts

At the beginning I really loved this story. And I even loved it in the middle. The end though was just a little too open for me. It meant that I could imagine a happily ever after, but I still wanted just a little bit more to cement that idea for me. Something that made me understand a few of the plot holes and made me feel that sense of happy anticipation that I felt at the very beginning of this tale.

Not many stories that I read start in a casino. Even less of them begin in a casino and are a time travelling romance. Which makes this a thoroughly enjoyable, intriguing way to start a story. My first thoughts considered whether or not she would be going backwards or forwards in time. I actually assumed forwards when she met her mystery man. But that really wasn’t the case.

The part of this story that I loved the most was the fact that although Cami absolutely adored the man she found in the past, she didn’t ever want to stay. A man wasn’t enough for her to give up her life and happiness in modern times. This seems to be frequently missing from a lot of time travel romances – they’re all about women who don’t have much in their current lives, so they choose to find their homes and happiness in another time, leaving everyone and everything behind.

 <- Sexual Healing ReviewThe Eleventh Hour Review ->
Image source: Goodreads

The Mammoth Book of Irish Romance edited by Trisha Telep

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Overview
The Mammoth Book of Irish Romance

Title: The Mammoth Book of Irish Romance
Author: Trisha Telep, Shirley Kennedy, Claire Delacroix, Margo Maguire, Cat Adams, Cindy Miles, Patricia Rice, Jennifer Ashley, Kathleen Givens, Jenna Maclaine, Dara England, Cindy Holby, Helen Scott Taylor, Roberta Gellis, Ciar Cullen, Susan Krinard, Nadia Williams, Penelope Neri, Sandra Newgent, Sue-Ellen Welfonder & Pat McDermott
Series: Mammoth Books
In: The Mammoth Book of Irish Romance (Trisha Telep)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Celtic, Fae, Romance, Short story collections
Pace: Slow
Format: Anthology
Publisher: Running Press
Year: 2010
5th sentence, 74th page: He gazed around the tiny room and frowned.

Synopsis

An enthralling collection of romantic tales set amidst beautiful Ireland’s lush ancient landscapes: pre-Christian ruins, green hills, rugged cliffs, and pounding Atlantic surf. These stories–by writers such as Roberta Gellis, Bertice Small, Jennifer Ashley, Claire Delacroix, and Mary Jo Putney–honor Ireland’s rich heritage as a land of poets, magic, and mystery. The publication will be just in time for St. Patrick’s Day.

Thoughts

I loved, loved, loved this collection. My heart melted. My soul sang. And I had a constant smile on my lips throughout the tale.

Irish folklore has always fascinated me and pulled me in. Probably because some of my family is originally from there. And so I collection of romances that are guaranteed to make your heart melt all based in the folklore and mythos of this beautiful country… well, for me, it is a dream come true.

I mostly read each of these beautiful short stories when I was up late at night and struggling to sleep. The short stories guaranteed that I couldn’t get too involved in the storyline. But the romantic and beautiful angle of the stories meant that I was guaranteed to have pleasant dreams and drift off with a smile on my face.

<- Just AskThe Blue Pebble ->

Image source: Goodreads

The Houndmaster by Sandra Newgent

Book Review, , , , ,

Overview

The Mammoth Book of Irish RomanceTitle: The Houndmaster

Author: Sandra Newgent

In: The Mammoth Book of Irish Romance (Trisha Telep)

Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)

My Bookshelves: Celtic, Easy reading, Family, Romance

Pace: Fast

Format: Short story

Publisher: Running Press

Year: 2010

5th sentence, 74th page: He held it high, admiring the graceful curves of thehammered gold cup.

Buy The Book Now at The Book Depository, Free Delivery World Wide

Synopsis

She wants to return her mother to life and fix the wrongs of the past. But when a man with a haunting secret interrupts her, everything changes in the blink of an eye.

Thoughts

This was a really fun and easy story to read. And it came up in my collection at exactly the right time… I had been having trouble sleeping / nightmares about my usual terrors, so I decided to read to try and get my mind off of things. And I read The Houndmaster which was incredibly beautiful and romantic.

Hellhounds is a relatively new concept to me, which makes any story that features them a new and exciting adventure. The idea that the male love interest in this story has an intricate connection to the hell beasties and the lady had witnessed their evil ferocity worked really nicely. The overarching connection between the two is both wonderfully fateful and a little overbearing.

Although I can remember the feelings that this story left me with, there are no incredibly potent moments. But that works for me… it’s sometimes nice to have a great feeling after reading a simple story. One that doesn’t necessarily linger, but still makes you feel happy and content inside.

 <- The Skrying Glass Review The Seventh Sister Review ->
Image source: Goodreads